Stringbeans
by MiniBerry
Summary: Forced to slave away in the kitchen, Izumi looks for a way to brighten her day and spies her unwitting prey out of the window...Cute KoujiIzumi friendship more than anything else.


**Disclaimer: **What's the point? Haven't you figured out by now that nobody actually owns Digimon? It's just this thing that kind of floats around and makes us all mad.  
  
**Author's Notes: **More shocking than the fact that I have written another story is the fact that it's rated G! Wow. I'm crazy. Well...I've got lots of stuff to do, so let's just go straight to the story.  
  
Also, please have the courtesy and the decency to review! Point out a flaw, tell me how much you idolize me, anything to let me know that people read what I make an effort to write! Now....please read, and enjoy. But if you don't review, I hope the guilt sits upon your chest FOREVER! AHAHAHAHAHA  
  
Did I tell you how much I love you for reading this? Hmmmm?  
**  
**

  
Stringbeans  
  
by Miniberry-Aug. 6, 2003  


  
Orimoto Izumi sulked as she stood in front of her sink, ripping the ends off of stringbeans with all of her might. Had one looked into her emerald eyes, they would have seen deep-rooted fury and anger. For something terrible had happened to Izumi. Something horrible. Something truly unforgivable.  
  
I _cannot_ believe my parents are forcing me to make dinner tonight, Izumi muttered, venom lacing her words. They know I can't cook. Why can't they just come back from the city early, and make their own stupid dinner? She decapitated one stringbean particularly viciously and yelped as it squirted a pea into her eye. Defeated, Izumi sat down on a nearby chair and began to wail pitifully.  
  
It's not _fair_! Izumi sobbed. This is slave labor! I'm not supposed to have to do these things...how can my parents _do_ this to me? I need a hug! Knowing that nobody was around to hear her cries just provoked the poor blonde even more, untill, all of a sudden, Izumi stood up resolutely and dried her tears. I can do this! she said determinedly. I can prepare those beans! And with this sudden mood swing giving her strength, Izumi returned to her task with a new will.  
  
This lasted for about three minutes, after which the girl began to feel hopeless again. She was preparing to give up once more when she noticed a familiar bandanna passing by the window over her sink. Izumi's green eyes narrowed mischeviously as the shrewd young lady formulated a devious plan.  
  
Within seconds Izumi's shoes were thrown on and she had sped out the door. she shrieked, barrelling towards the unfortunate young man. Kouji, help meeee!  
  
Minamoto Kouji turned around, startled. He barely had time to register what was happening to him before Izumi pounced, throwing her arms around his neck. Wha...what's wrong? he asked, not sure whether to be worried...or annoyed.  
  
I need your help, Kouji, please!! Izumi wailed.  
  
Kouji coolly detached her from his neck. What's going on? He had decided that she wasn't in any real trouble, and now he was a little miffed at this intrusion on his solitude.   
  
Izumi immediately cheered up, and smiled a poisonous smile. I need your help in my kitchen. Now! Using her advantage of surprise, she grabbed Kouji's wrist and had him in front of her sink before he could protest.  
  
What am I doing here? Kouji groaned.  
  
You're going to help me cook dinner. Okay? Izumi said in an overly cheery tone.  
  
the poor boy intoned.  
  
Izumi shoved some rice towards him. Boil this, while I marinate some chicken, she ordered, stringbeans forgotten for now. Kouji stared at her for a minute, then sighed in defeat. He had nothing else to do anyway.  
  
So Izumi poured spices and sauce liberally over the unfortunate cubes of chicken, while Kouji set rice and water on the stove and began to stir, mired deep in thoughts of nothing in particular. The kitchen was quiet except for Izumi's contented humming, and, although he'd never admit it, Kouji was sort of...happy? No, that couldn't be it. He was trapped in Izumi's kitchen, _cooking rice_, for goodness' sake! He should be miserable!  
  
'Scuse me, Izumi said in a singsong voice, shoving Kouji gently out of the way so she could open the oven. She slipped the chicken dish in and smiled. All done, how's the rice coming?  
  
It's coming along, Kouji said quietly. It'll be done soon, I think.  
  
Izumi trilled. Thank you, Kouji! Now I'm going to go wash my hands, I'll be back in a second. Kouji took no notice of Izumi's absence until he heard a high-pitched scream from the bathroom. Without a second thought, he dashed in. Only afterwards did he   
realize how lucky he was that Izumi had been fully clothed.  
  
What...what happened? Kouji inquired, slightly nervous at the sight of her bright red cheeks and frightened eyes.   
  
I forgot the stringbeans! They were supposed to go in with the chicken! Now my meal is ruined!  
  
Kouji facefaulted. That's _it_? That's why you screamed?  
  
I can't mess this up! Then my parents will be convinced that I'm a useless child... and... and they'll make me cook dinner again and again until I get it right! she hiccuped out through her tears.  
  
Kouji rolled his eyes, but handed her a tissue. Here, stop crying, he said. We'll go finish the stringbeans together, that way we can put them in more quickly and it'll be all right.  
  
Izumi took the tissue and loudly blew her nose. Thank...thank you, Kouji, she said softly.  
  
Kouji smiled despite himself. No problem. Then he turned away, embarrassed. Let's go, all right?  
  
The two returned to the kitchen and the offending pile of stringbeans. We just have to snap the ends off, then wash the beans and put them in the oven, Izumi directed.  
  
Kouji nodded, the thought occuring to him that this was one of the more ridiculous things that had happened to him in a while. However, snapping the ends off of stringbeans while watching the world go by and just barely touching shoulders with Izumi was oddly comforting to him. He couldn't remember a time when he had been more relaxed.  
  
Izumi was hard-pressed to keep a grin from invading her features. She had a feeling that Kouji was less annoyed with her than he let on. And she couldn't stop thinking about how sweet he had been in the bathroom. No, Kouji didn't have a heart of stone. Kouji was--she giggled at the thought--a softie!  
  
What are you laughing at? he asked, turning to her in the middle of snapping a bean.  
  
Izumi said, but she giggled again at the look on his face.  
  
Hey...you're not laughing at me, are you? Kouji said, narrowing his eyes suspiciously.   
  
Of course not! Izumi laughed, giving up. I'm just...just....HEY! This exclamation resulted from Kouji flicking the end of a stringbean at her. What was that for? She threw one back at him, hitting him in the middle of his forehead, and laughed as he paused in shock.  
  
Why you... Kouji scooped up a handful of bean ends and started firing them rapidly at Izumi, who grabbed some of her own and fought back valiantly. However, Kouji had most of the ammo, and eventually when Izumi reached for some more ammunition she found none. She yelped and ran to the other end of the kitchen, dodging Kouji's bullets as well as she could until he, also, had run out. Izumi was nothing less than shocked when she came out of her defensive pose and realized that Kouji was...laughing! Kouji, though as surprised as Izumi, just could not stop, and he laughed so hard tears came to his eyes. Pulling over the chair Izumi had been crying in just an hour earlier, Kouji sat down and continued to laugh. When Izumi got over the initial shock of seeing Kouji so cheerful, she started to laugh as well. Shaking with mirth, the two amateur cooks sat in the kitchen, the stringbeans once again forgotten on the counter.  
  


***  


Three hours later, the kitchen was clean, Kouji had departed, and a meal for three sat upon the table. It smells delicious! Izumi's mother said with a smile.  
  
Thank you! Izumi beamed.   
  
I do believe you're a better cook than we thought you were, thank goodness, quipped her dad, earning a stern look from his wife.  
  
After the obligatory had been said, the three tucked into their meals. To her surprise (or maybe not so much), Izumi found the stringbeans to be her favorite dish. Thank you, Kouji, for a lovely afternoon, she whispered, more to herself than anything else, and turned her full attention to her food.  
  
**Plea from Author:** Please, please review! I need to know if anyone actually reads my fics. Even if it just says or something, I'd love to hear from you, and I promise to come review one of your fics if you do! Anyway, I hope you enjoyed it, I really do. Nothing makes me happier than making someone else happier through my writing! Have an excellent day!  
  
~Love from  
Mini


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